'Eco-critics believe we ignore the
connection between human culture
and the non-human world at our
peril'
In the light of your reading from the
critical anthology, how does
U.A.Fanthorpe's poetry support this
view?
, Influenced by her war-time childhood, much of Fanthorpe's poetry is focused on the
aftermath and long-term effects war has on a person. However she also created poems which
explore man’s relationship with the natural world and encapsulates the issues surrounding the
severed connection between “human culture and the non-human world.”1 While Fanthorpe's
approach to the subject of environmental damage is similar to other critical poets such as
Larkin, she focusses on the importance of man living harmoniously with nature as essential in
creating and maintaining global peace. In her 'Selected Poems' collection, Fanthorpe focusses
the reader's attention on the immense power of nature and in the inevitability of nature's
survival despite man's best efforts to eradicate it.
Fanthorpe's poetry may be considered to deliver a warning to humanity that ignoring the
benefits of a mutual relationship with the natural world can be catastrophic to human life.
This warning is effectively reflected in 'Canal 1977,’ which features the contrast between the
corruption of man and the patience and purity of nature. The creation of the manmade
structures - the canals - perhaps symbolises the war between man and nature through the way
they are formed and their purpose. The demand for so many canals was fuelled by the rise of
industrialisation and modernism in the 18th century, when the transport of commodities in
large quantities depended on the canals, which inevitably led to the destruction of the
countryside as the land was blown apart to accommodate the structures. Through Fanthorpe's
detailed description of man's corruption as "bankrupt contractors grizzling into their beers"2,
the readers can pick up on how the distasteful imagery suggests how the importance of
ownership of land and profit is more significant than the rights of the land. Describing the
men as ‘bankrupt’ and ‘grizzling’3 suggests that the imbalance between the natural world and
humanity has created the downfall of man as they are morally and financially ruined.
Moreover, through describing the condition of the physical environment as "ashes, when the
bunting has bobbed”4 conveys the extent to which man will go to achieve power and how
devastatingly the environment must pay for this control.
In 'Canal 1977', Fanthorpe constructs a common theme that showcases the power of nature
through using personification to give nature a form that man will never totally erase or
destroy. In the last stanza, Fanthorpe personifies nature with "the mute persistence of
water/and grass and trees"5 which recognises the tireless perseverance of nature that
Fanthorpe uses as a symbol to show its dominance over mankind. Despite the rise of
industrialisation, Fanthorpe believes industry could never overpower the power of the natural
environment which can lay dormant and voiceless for years before resurfacing. This
interpretation is reinforced with "trees and grass/waiting to take over"6 with personification
yet again creating a sinister image of nature waiting to rise and take back the land and
resources that man so ignorantly has stolen. An eco-critical reading suggests that through
man’s destructive actions, the processes of biodiversity loss, climate change and ozone
depletion are consequences for humanity as they will suffer as the land offers fewer resources
1
Critical Anthology
2
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
3
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
4
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
5
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
6
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
connection between human culture
and the non-human world at our
peril'
In the light of your reading from the
critical anthology, how does
U.A.Fanthorpe's poetry support this
view?
, Influenced by her war-time childhood, much of Fanthorpe's poetry is focused on the
aftermath and long-term effects war has on a person. However she also created poems which
explore man’s relationship with the natural world and encapsulates the issues surrounding the
severed connection between “human culture and the non-human world.”1 While Fanthorpe's
approach to the subject of environmental damage is similar to other critical poets such as
Larkin, she focusses on the importance of man living harmoniously with nature as essential in
creating and maintaining global peace. In her 'Selected Poems' collection, Fanthorpe focusses
the reader's attention on the immense power of nature and in the inevitability of nature's
survival despite man's best efforts to eradicate it.
Fanthorpe's poetry may be considered to deliver a warning to humanity that ignoring the
benefits of a mutual relationship with the natural world can be catastrophic to human life.
This warning is effectively reflected in 'Canal 1977,’ which features the contrast between the
corruption of man and the patience and purity of nature. The creation of the manmade
structures - the canals - perhaps symbolises the war between man and nature through the way
they are formed and their purpose. The demand for so many canals was fuelled by the rise of
industrialisation and modernism in the 18th century, when the transport of commodities in
large quantities depended on the canals, which inevitably led to the destruction of the
countryside as the land was blown apart to accommodate the structures. Through Fanthorpe's
detailed description of man's corruption as "bankrupt contractors grizzling into their beers"2,
the readers can pick up on how the distasteful imagery suggests how the importance of
ownership of land and profit is more significant than the rights of the land. Describing the
men as ‘bankrupt’ and ‘grizzling’3 suggests that the imbalance between the natural world and
humanity has created the downfall of man as they are morally and financially ruined.
Moreover, through describing the condition of the physical environment as "ashes, when the
bunting has bobbed”4 conveys the extent to which man will go to achieve power and how
devastatingly the environment must pay for this control.
In 'Canal 1977', Fanthorpe constructs a common theme that showcases the power of nature
through using personification to give nature a form that man will never totally erase or
destroy. In the last stanza, Fanthorpe personifies nature with "the mute persistence of
water/and grass and trees"5 which recognises the tireless perseverance of nature that
Fanthorpe uses as a symbol to show its dominance over mankind. Despite the rise of
industrialisation, Fanthorpe believes industry could never overpower the power of the natural
environment which can lay dormant and voiceless for years before resurfacing. This
interpretation is reinforced with "trees and grass/waiting to take over"6 with personification
yet again creating a sinister image of nature waiting to rise and take back the land and
resources that man so ignorantly has stolen. An eco-critical reading suggests that through
man’s destructive actions, the processes of biodiversity loss, climate change and ozone
depletion are consequences for humanity as they will suffer as the land offers fewer resources
1
Critical Anthology
2
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
3
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
4
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
5
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
6
Fanthorpe, U. A. (2013) Selected Poems. London: Enitharmon Press
